1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to the heating of loads utilizing both a regenerative heat exchanger for energy transfer between stale air leaving the load and fresh air entering the load, and an electrically powered air cycle heat pump for efficiently providing heat to the load with the same fresh air. The heat pump includes a turbinedriven compressor which utilizes the stale air as the refrigerant, the compressed stale air providing the heat for the regenerative heat exchanger and the turbine performing work in discharging the stale refrigerant air to ambient.
2. Description of the Prior Art
It is well known to use a regenerative heat exchanger to conserve energy in a system in which fresh air is supplied to a load to replace stale air. Likewise it is known to use an electric-powered air cycle heat pump including a compressor-expander to reduce heating energy requirements. Many different configurations exist for the construction of the regenerative heat exchanger including plates, fins, tubes and other components thereof, most of which may be used in conjunction with the present invention. Likewise, any well known construction of electric-driven compressor-expander for air cycle heat pumps may be used with the present invention.
This invention relates specifically to the use of regenerative heat exchangers in conjunction with electric-driven comressor-expanders in a novel arrangement to produce a highly efficient regenerative air cycle heat pump system, while at the same time being able to provide fresh air to the load.
It is therefore an object of this invention to efficiently provide fresh air to a load in a regenerative air cycle heat pump system.
Another object of this invention is the use of a single heat exchanger in combination with an electrically-driven air cycle heat pump including a compressor-expander to heat a load with fresh air.